It is summer and time for kids to be outside playing. While they are out there, they are bound to come across, worms, mosquitoes, bees and ticks. Tick bites are a common concern for families and result in many calls and visits to the pediatrician’s office.
The reality is that the risk of getting a significant illness from a tick bite is very small. While the rate of Lyme disease has increased in our community over the last 5 years, it is still not nearly as high as many parts of the East Coast Further north. Other diseases that can be transmitted by ticks are Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, Ehrlichiosis, and Babesiosis. Lyme is probably the most common concern in my office.
The reality is that the risk of getting a significant illness from a tick bite is very small. While the rate of Lyme disease has increased in our community over the last 5 years, it is still not nearly as high as many parts of the East Coast Further north. Other diseases that can be transmitted by ticks are Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, Ehrlichiosis, and Babesiosis. Lyme is probably the most common concern in my office.
When you discover a tick on your child, don’t panic! Ticks cannot transmit disease if they are not attached. So, it is walking around, simply remove it and move on -- there is no risk to your child. If it is attached, look to see if it seems to be engorged, or full of blood. If it is not, it has likely not been on very long and the chance of disease transmission is almost none. If the tick is engorged, you will remove it the same way as a non-engorged tick but you should be a little more watchful for signs of illness in your child.
There are many home remedies regarding tick removal. However, you want to get the tick off, not wait for it to detach. Therefore, the best method is to grab the tick with fine tweezers close to its insertion site in the skin. Pull firmly and slowly back until the tick comes out of the skin. Do not twist or jerk as this will make it more likely to break. If the head or mouthparts remain in the skin, you can try to gently remove them with tweezers. However, there is no need to dig them out as the body will take care of them itself. You are more likely to cause harm or a skin infection by trying to dig out the head of a tick than you are to prevent illness. After removing the tick, all you need to do is to wash the area with soap and water.
There are many home remedies regarding tick removal. However, you want to get the tick off, not wait for it to detach. Therefore, the best method is to grab the tick with fine tweezers close to its insertion site in the skin. Pull firmly and slowly back until the tick comes out of the skin. Do not twist or jerk as this will make it more likely to break. If the head or mouthparts remain in the skin, you can try to gently remove them with tweezers. However, there is no need to dig them out as the body will take care of them itself. You are more likely to cause harm or a skin infection by trying to dig out the head of a tick than you are to prevent illness. After removing the tick, all you need to do is to wash the area with soap and water.
Different types of ticks cause different diseases. It may be helpful if your child has any problems to save the tick in a plastic bag so that the doctor can see it. Ticks with a white collar (dog tick) or white spot on their backs (lone star tick) cannot transmit Lyme disease. Deer ticks (that can cause Lyme) are distinguished by their small size and their dark brown or black legs. They do not have other markings. For young children, you do not need to do anything more after a tick bite than to watch the area of the bite for a rash and to monitor for a fever or so sore joints for a few weeks. If any of those develop, it is a good idea to call your doctor. For children older than 8, some doctors may give a single dose of an antibiotic called doxycycline to prevent Lyme disease. This is only indicated in areas where the risk of Lyme is high, a known deer tick was attached more than 36 hours, and the antibiotic can be given within 72 hours of removal of the tick.
Even though ticks do bite people and can transmit disease, the risk of this occurring is small. They are not a good reason to keep your kids cooped up during the fun summer evenings. The best prevention is to undress your child and bath them after playing outside when ticks are not even attached yet and can be removed. If one is missed and becomes attached, remove it and consider saving it in case problems like a rash or fever develop later. Otherwise, enjoy the summer weather and time outside with your kids!
